


Some Like Explosives

by caughtinthenow



Series: A Crew's Orgins [4]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: (more tags to be added), Fake AH Crew, Origin Story, Pre-Fake AH Crew
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-23
Updated: 2017-12-07
Packaged: 2019-02-05 22:41:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12803934
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caughtinthenow/pseuds/caughtinthenow
Summary: When Michael left New Jersey, he didn't know what he was going to do with his life. After getting a job at an ammunition store, Michael meets the Kingpin himself, who might quite possibly be one of his idols. Things start to change for him when the Kingpin takes interest in him.





	1. Meeting the Kingpin

When he was a kid, Michael used to be fascinated with fireworks. He would beg and plead to be taken to any kind of firework display, promising anything that would give him the chance to go. He wasn’t entirely sure what fascinated him the most, the way they lighted up the night sky, or the explosions. Nonetheless, he was mesmerized.

When he got older, building fireworks became a hobby for him. At first, getting ahold of the necessary items was difficult, and often earned him nervous looks. Eventually though, people just ignored it. After all, his fireworks had been innocent enough.

Then he became fascinated with heavy explosives. Graduating from fireworks to heavy explosives had been simple enough. It took some tinkering here and there, and few adjustments to ratios, but eventually, he found the perfect balance.

It wasn’t like he did anything bad with them. Most of the time, he’d go out to an abandoned area, detonate them, and then go back home. If he didn’t hurt anyone or destroy anything, no one really cared about Michael’s explosives.

\--

When Michael turned eighteen, he bought a bus ticket out of New Jersey. He hadn’t known what he was doing, he just knew that there was more to life outside of New Jersey. Somehow, he found himself in Los Santos, on the opposite side of the country. It was a different experience, people acted differently. The town seemed to be ruled by gangs, and the police seemed to be practically useless. Yet, for whatever reason, Michael liked it. He liked the shitty apartment he could barely afford, he liked the thrill of the dangers to come. It was exciting.

He found himself doing odd jobs here and there. For a while, he worked at a used video game store, though eventually, the owner had lost the shop in a bet, and he had to find a new job. Briefly, he worked a grocery store, bagging groceries for people that sometimes would glare at him for no reason. Then he landed a job at an ammunition store. “Look, kid, we just need someone for the night shift. The last guy quit unexpectantly, and I’ll be honest, I’m desperate enough to hire a kid your age,” the manager had told him.

It wasn’t particularly exciting at first. Most of the time, the shop was empty most of the night. Occasionally someone would walk in, look at the guns for a while, then ask if they could use the restroom. Still, it paid decently, and as far as he could tell, he had to do little to no work.

He heard stories about a crew that worked mainly at night, ran by a man who was said to be out for revenge. No one knew anything about the Fakes, not really. If there was one thing that they were good at, it was hiding their identity. There were never any clues left at the scene that might shed light into who they really were. There were rumors, tales about how the Kingpin had taken out the old boss and took over the crew, while others said that they had seen the boss get shot, and that’s why the Kingpin was out for revenge.

He always found the Fakes to be a lot more fascinating that any of the other crews in town. In fact, it seemed as though all the other crews paled in comparison. The Fakes seemed to have their jobs down perfectly, never seemed to fail, and always got away, which was more than any other crew could say.

Most people dreaded the idea of having an encounter with the fakes. Most of the time, it didn’t end pretty for those who encountered the fakes.  Michael, on the other hand, couldn’t wait for the chance to meet them. He hoped every night that maybe, just maybe, the crew would choose his shop to restock at.

He had an hour before he was supposed to switch out with the morning employee. It was late, and the night had been pretty damn boring. Then a man strolled in, mask on his face, dressed in a suit. As soon as Michael saw him, his heart skipped a beat. Excitement filled him as he realized who the man was.

The man placed down a list on the counter, staring at Michael. Michael raised an eyebrow and reached out, taking a close look at the list. Most of the list consisted of varying types of ammunition and multiple body armors, however, at the bottom, he found a list of explosives, which caught his attention. He started pulling out all the ammo, setting it on the counter, and then handed over the body armor.

“You know, if you want the most out of your money, I’d get some Proximity Mines. That shit works like sticky bombs but no one can see it coming, there’s no light to them,” he explained. The man stared at him for a moment.

“Add about twenty of those to the list then,” he grumbled. Michael just nodded, quickly going to pull it out. He could feel his heart racing, and he couldn’t wait to hear about this heist later. Something inside of him found it thrilling that he was the one whole provided the ammunition to the Fakes.

\--

He wasn’t entirely sure how it happened, but suddenly it was as though the Kingpin only came to his store. Michael started hearing around that no one ever seemed to see him at any ammunition store. It made him excited that the Kingpin was shopping exclusively at his store.

 He usually didn’t say much, only speaking if Michael offered up suggestions or if he was curious. Sometimes the other man just came in to hang out, not actually buying anything. Usually they’d just talk, which led Michael to realize that the guy wasn’t nearly as scary as the news made him out to be.

Michael had started to get used to the visits, whether it was just for the man to hang out, or if he was going to be purchasing things. He found himself excited, not just because it was the leader of the Fakes, but the fact that he really did enjoy the company of the Kingpin.

\--

 “How come you know so much about explosives?” The kingpin asked. Michael hesitated, then shrugged.

“I was obsessed with them as a kid. Spent a lot of time learning how to make them and what all of it does,” he replied, putting the case of explosives onto the counter for the older man.

“You know how to build them?” The man gasped, sounding like a mixture of surprised and intrigued. Michael shrugged.

“Not that hard honestly,” he said, ringing everything up. The older man scoffed.

“Prove it,” he replied. Michael looked up, staring at the man, surprised by the challenge. He wasn’t sure what to say at first, wasn’t sure how he was supposed to respond to the fact that one of the most dangerous men in the city wanted to see his explosives.

“Sure, why not?” He shrugged, masking his nervousness.

—

He had forgotten about how thrilling it felt to build his own explosives. The kingpin had generously supplied him with what he had needed, and seemed excited to see Michael in action. It had taken him some trial and error attempts to get what he needed, and Michael had almost screwed up too many times, but eventually it worked. He stared proudly at the explosive in front of him.

When the older man came in that night, Michael beamed at him. “I finished it!” he announced, looking proudly at the Kingpin. The Kingpin stared at him for a moment, then leaned forward.

“Let’s see,” he announced. Michael proudly walked to his bag. He carefully pulled it out and then even more carefully brought it to the other. The man looked at it for a moment, not saying anything. He turned it over, studying it. Eventually he looked back up to Michael. “Kind of small, isn’t it?” he asked. Michael snorted.

“It’s the small things that explode the hardest,” he hummed, amused that the man was questioning it. “So whatcha going to do with it?” he asked, somewhat curiously. The older man chuckled.

“I’ll let you know after I use it,” he hummed, slapping down a list. “Now, I need this shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh!! Sorry! This was supposed to be posted on Wednesday as promised, but with it being the holidays, things are kind of crazy. I have the whole thing written out though, so it'll be posting every Wednesday! I hope you enjoy! Kudos and comments are really appreciated!! Happy Thanksgiving if you celebrate!


	2. Practice, practice, practice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After clearly showing off that he knew how to build explosives, the Kingpin decides to have Michael meet somewhere after work. He's in for a shock however when things aren't as it seems.

Michael sat bored in the shop, wondering if the Kingpin was going to come that night. The news was playing silently on the TV, and normally he didn’t pay much attention to it. However, tonight something caught his eye. Splashed across the screen, he saw some mansion, which appeared half destroyed. The words ‘Fakes Strike Again’ splashed across the screen. Smirking, he reached for the remote, turning up the volume.

_“…According to witnesses, the explosive was ten times greater than the usual explosives that the Fakes are known to use. They were apparently able to get into the mansion and steal the Diamond of Noel within minutes of the explosion. There are currently no leads on the locations of the Fakes, however, if you have any information about them, please call…”_

Michael wondered if the explosive they used was the one that he made. He couldn’t help but hope that it was.

\--

It was a week before he saw the Kingpin again, not that he was really surprised it took the man a while to come in. Still, he couldn’t help but feel excited as he saw the man come in. He approached the counter, slapping down a list. Michael grinned, immediately setting to work. “Your explosives got some kick to it,” the man, leaning against the counter. Michael beamed. It had been his.

“It’s a passion,” he shrugged. The man nodded. The whole time, he felt eyes on him as he got the usual things put together.

“Can you shoot a gun?” he asked. Michael froze, looking back.

“I mean, I know how to. Started learning when I got here. Figured it was better to know, especially working in an ammunition shop,” he shrugged, ringing up the items. The kingpin continued to stare at him. He reached into his pocket and put another piece of paper down.

“Come to this address when you get off work,” the man said. He handed over the cash for the items and left. Michael reached for the paper, heart racing. He pushed the paper in his pocket, not sure what to do. It wasn’t every day that the Kingpin requested for someone to meet them after work.

It took a lot for him to focus the rest of the night. He wanted to close shop early, but he knew that if he didn’t wait for the next person on shift, all he would get is shit from the manager. The night was boring, like usual, no one came. Usually, his only customer was the kingpin, but the manager insisted that they needed someone at night.

As soon as his coworker showed up, he gathered his stuff up and left, quickly. Michael let out a long yawn, stretching out his body. He wondered how long the Kingpin had been waiting for him. Reaching for the paper in his pocket, he felt nervous. This was the first time he was going to see him outside of work.

The address led him to a gun range, not that Michael was really surprised, considering the question the man had asked him before. He had been to this gun range a couple of times when he was learning the basics. The staff usually just let you do your thing once you paid your time, and didn’t ask questions.

As he walked closer, he saw someone leaning in the shadows. Nervously, he took a step forward. As he approached, the person in the shadows didn’t move, instead just continued to keep leaning against the wall.

“Hello? I uh, I was told to come here,” he announced. The man took a step forward, and to his disappointment, he found that it wasn’t the Kingpin. He felt his throat grow dry as he realized who it was.

“Kingpin sent me,” the man announced. Michael just stared at the man, knowing exactly who he was. The Vagabond was dangerous if there was anyone of the crew he feared, it was the Vagabond. He heard that the man enjoyed taking people out, that he was bloodthirsty, and was terrifying when pissed off.  Michael nodded slowly, understanding.

The man opened the door to the gun range, holding it open for the other man to enter. Michael dashed forward, not wanting to annoy him.

\--

“You’re holding it wrong.”

Michael grimaced, trying to reposition the way he was holding the gun. The Vagabond let out a long sight. “Look, I’ll show you _again_ ,” the Vagabond growled. Michael just nodded, looking closely. They had been there for several hours, trying out different guns and practicing form. In all honesty, Michael was exhausted, he just wanted to go home and sleep. Yet, it wasn’t every day that he got the chance to do this.

Eventually, the Vagabond seemed to be satisfied with how he was holding the gun. “We’re going to stop there. I have shit to do. Meet me here tonight. Same time,” he announced, carefully putting the guns away. Michael just nodded, not sure what to say. He leaned over, starting to help the Vagabond put the guns away, but the man swatted his hand away. “Go,” he growled. Michael just nodded, backing away quickly to get away.

If he was being honest with himself, he was still surprised this was happening. He wasn’t entirely sure what was going on, why the Kingpin really wanted him to learn guns, or why he seemed so interested. Still, it was almost a dream come true.

He knew he shouldn’t be so excited about a crew being interested in him. He knew that it was dangerous and that he could get himself into a fuckload of trouble, but there was something thrilling about it.

\--

Michael had lost track of how many times he had met up with the Vagabond. He wasn’t even sure if he was even improving, but the man wasn’t getting angry at him nearly as much. As they finished the night, the Vagabond was quiet. Even though the Vagabond hadn’t allowed him to help put the guns away the first night, he didn’t seem to have any problems with it now.

“Don’t come here tomorrow night,” he said, not looking at Michael. Michael frowned.

“What? Are you busy? Do you have a heist or something?” he asked.

“Nope. I’m just not doing this anymore,” the Vagabond replied. Michael’s face fell. _Oh_. He just nodded, finishing with putting the guns away. He felt kind of disappointed that it was all over, and couldn’t help but wonder if he really hadn’t been improving.

“Uh, thanks. For teaching me,” he said awkwardly. The Vagabond didn’t say anything. Instead, he just walked away, leaving Michael alone.

Michael just stood there, disappointed. He had gotten so used to spending time around the Vagabond, and it had made getting through his nights at work worth it. Yet now, he wasn’t sure what he had to look forward to.

The next night, no one came. The Vagabond didn’t show up, and the Kingpin didn’t show up at the store. He let out a long sigh. Maybe he disappointed them. Maybe they weren’t that impressed with what he could do. He let out a sigh. Time passed by slowly. The nights started to just blur together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! I hope everyone is enjoying this story! I have one more chapter left before this is complete. Unfortunately, because finals and me traveling home is literally the next two weeks, I wont be able to do much writing. I do plan on having another part of the series out by the end of December though, i'm sorry for the long wait!


	3. A Slightly Dangerous Offer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Being cut off from the Fakes sucked, it really did. However, when Michael receives an offer, he isn't sure he can say no.

Michael sipped on some coffee, staring out the window. Ever since the kingpin had stopped communicating with him, he had felt bored…lonely.

“Okay, I know you wanted me to go out of state, but Geoffrey, look at the Los Santos University’s film department!”

Michael glanced over, seeing a young man and an older man sitting over two plates of pancakes. The older man looked slightly annoyed. “Gavin, I already told you no. Besides, wouldn’t somewhere like New York be better?” he replied. Michael frowned, recognizing the voice. He wasn’t entirely sure where he recognized it, but he did. The younger man was pouting.

“Geoff, I don’t want to leave Los Santos. I want to stay here with you and Jack,” he pouted. Michael tried not to roll his eyes at the sight of the pout. “Just think about it, yeah?”

The older man, Geoff, let out a long sigh. “Fine. I’ll think about it. No promises,” he replied. The younger man, Gavin, just beamed at him.

Michael stopped listening in, figuring it wasn’t his business. Deep inside of him, the older man was bothering him. He couldn’t figure out where he had heard the voice before, but it was recognizable.

If he was being honest with himself, the fact that it was bothering him so much made him feel rather annoyed. Once the check came, he didn’t wait. Instead, he angrily tossed the cash on the check and walked out.

\--

Michael heard a loud clang as the door to the shop opened. He looked up quickly, hoping to see the familiar masked man, but felt rather disappointed when it wasn’t him. He tilted his head as a young man approached. He looked nervous, as though he shouldn’t be there. “Can I help you?” he asked.

“I uh, I’m looking to buy a gun,” he announced. Michael frowned, immediately recognizing the voice from earlier that day.

“You were in the diner,” he said. The man looked at him, slightly confused.

“Excuse me?” he asked.

“You were sitting in the booth behind me. Really loud,” Michael announced. The other male flushed slightly but quickly regained his composure.

“And your point is?”

“Nothing, I was just stating a fact. Anyways, what kind of gun are you looking for?” he asked, changing the subject.

“Oh uh, I was just looking for something basic,” the male replied. Michael snorted.

“Right, well,” he paused, looking for the most basic gun he could find. “Maybe a pistol? Pretty simple. Though maybe you’re a flare kinda guy,” he joked. The male didn’t look impressed. “Kidding, here,” he said, taking it out.

Gavin studied it, looking it up and down, before shrugging. “I guess this will work.”

“Why do you need a gun?” he asked, looking somewhat curious. Gavin’s lips curled into a smirk. A shiver went through his body at the smirk, something inside of his fluttering.

“Wouldn’t you like to know, love,” he hummed, glancing back down at the gun. “It’s for protection. I have a job, people in Los Santos aren’t exactly the best,” he said eventually, sounding a bit bored. Michael chuckled. “I’ll take this by the way. Ammo too,” Gavin announced. Michael nodded, ringing everything up. He pulled out registration papers, handing it over for Gavin to fill out.

Twenty minutes later, and a lot of grumbling from Gavin, the male was leaving his store. “Bye!” Gavin said cheerfully, waving at him. Michael just waved back, watching as the guy left. When he was out of sight, he let out a long sigh.

\--

Michael handed over the keys to his coworker, mentally preparing himself for the walk home. All he really wanted to do was get in bed, maybe sleep for a couple of hours, and catch up on some of his games. As he walked, he couldn’t help but feel like something was off. He felt like someone was watching him, however, when he looked back, all he saw was a car parked on the side of the run. He frowned, not sure why he was being paranoid.

Everything continued to feel weird though, no matter how much he tried to ignore it. He glanced back, just in time to see the car still moving. Swallowing, he sped up and eventually started running. However, he quickly realized that the car following him was much faster than he was. It swung in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

Michael felt like his heart was going too fast. He was frozen to the spot.

“Get in,” a familiar voice said. Michael frowned. The Vagabond? He cautiously stepped forward, and opened the door, getting in. The man didn’t wait for him to buckle, he just took off as soon as Michael was in the car.

“What’s going on?” he asked, confused.

“The boss wants to see you,” The Vagabond replied. Michael blinked. Part of him wanted to be annoyed, part of him was excited.

“Why didn’t he just come to the shop like usual?” he asked. The Vagabond let out a sigh.

“You ask too many questions, just shut up.”

Michael clamped his mouth shut and didn’t say anything the rest of the ride. He stared down at the ground, wondering what was going on. Had he interfered too much with the crew? Were they going to take him out?

He wasn’t sure when he dozed off, however, he jumped awake when he heard a car door slam. He looked around groggily, trying to understand where he was. “Come on,” the Vagabond said. Michael sleepily got out, following behind him. The man led him into a building. It was dark and empty looking, maybe a bit cramped, not at all what he expected the Fakes to have.

The Vagabond sat him down in a room and disappeared. Michael sat nervously, looking around. Like the hall that he had been in, the room was cramped, dark. A large bed had been shoved in the corner, along with a small mini fridge and a couch. He looked down. Had they maybe kidnapped him and was holding him hostage? He clenched his teeth, looking around. Maybe there was a gun or something, something that would make sure he was armed. He moved around the room, glancing occasionally at the door, as he searched for something to arm himself with.

Eventually, he found a knife. It wasn’t the sharpest, in fact, it was rather dull, but he figured anything was better than nothing.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” a man chuckled. Michael jumped, turning to face the Kingpin himself.

“Why the fuck am I here?” he asked. The Kingpin chuckled, sitting on the couch. He lounged back, looking as though he was making himself comfortable.

“How’d you feel about joining the Fakes?” The Kingpin asked, Michael, felt his jaw drop, sure that he heard that wrong.

“What?” he asked.

“We want you,” the Kingpin shrugged. “Been talking about it for a while. It’d be nice to have an explosives guy, and according to the Vagabond, you damn good with a gun. Plus, we both took a liking to you,” the Kingpin explained. Michael couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“I…What...?” he gasped, looking at him shocked. Nothing about his interactions with the Vagabond told him that he liked him.

“Gotta say, the pay is great, you have most days off, people have your back, and lemme tell you, the reputation feels amazing,” the man hummed. Michael swallowed hard.

Wasn’t this what he wanted? Wasn’t this what he had dreamed of? “You don’t have to answer now, though we’re going to need you to stay until you do,” he added. Michael knew becoming a criminal was a bad idea. He knew that he’d probably regret it. Yet, here was his chance to make something of himself.

“Okay,” Michael said, forcing himself to look at the Kingpin. “I’ll join.”

The man gave a loud sigh of relief.

“Oh thank god. Thought that it was going to take more convincing,” he announced, reaching up. Michael stared at the man, watching him as he pulled off his mask. Michael blinked a couple of times, not expecting that.

“I’m Geoff,” the man announced, tossing the mask to the side. He walked up to Michael, hand outstretched.

“Michael…” Michael replied quickly, still in shock. Geoff grinned.

“I know. Welcome to the Fakes, kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys! I know I seem to be posting pretty late everytime, it's just been crazy. Anyways, I hope that you've enjoyed this story! I've reworked my plan for Jeremy, which I'm pretty excited about honestly, so hopefully I can get to writing that soon! Thanks for reading!


End file.
